Saturday, February 28, 2009

Tonight is my niece's birthday party. My sister asked that we bring over some low carb creamed spinach. She also inquired about what types of food I'm able to eat. Isn't that sweet? I hope that will translate into an option or two that's truly low carb. Sometimes other peoples perception about what's LC isn't in fact LC. We shall see. I'll report back and try to take pictures.

Friday, February 27, 2009

I used a packet of Jay Robb chocolate whey protein in my mid-day shake. It made the shake taste even better. I like Jay Robb's products because they're 100% natural (he's been using stevia in his products for years). Almost as importantly, they usually taste really good. I don't use them often however because they tend to be quite expensive.

I've been kind of busy and preoccupied lately. When I feel that way, eating is the last thing I'm interested in. In fact, it almost feels like a chore. That's why I often make a shake, instead of a proper meal. Fortunately, I feel like I've come up with a genuinely healthy meal replacement. So I don't feel bad about utilizing it anytime that I need/want to. The added bonus is that it really does taste delicious to me.

Thursday, February 26, 2009

I just got back from my treadmill work out. That makes 2 days this week. I plan on walking one more day - for a total of 3 sessions, per week. It's a modest goal but one that I hope to maintain over the long haul.

Today I walked for 45 minutes and 45 seconds. I stuck with a speed of 3 and an incline of 1.5. That equals to about 2.28 miles. I also walked to the gym (as my warm up) and walked back afterward (as my cool down).

Now it's cooking time. I'm making pork shoulder and mashed cauliflower for dinner. I hope it turns out well. I always get a little nervous when I cook something that I'm not very experienced with. I've only cooked pork shoulder, in the oven, once before. It turned out really well. I hope that wasn't a fluke!

Wednesday, February 25, 2009

So this past week I had a stall in my weight loss. Yesterday, while walking, I recalled something Pooti mentioned. She urged me to be cautious about using flax seed meal. Apparently, some people find it negatively impacts their ability to lose weight. Why? It's possible that it affects thyroid function.

I looked back at my menu history and noted that I began using the flax on the 14th (of February). I last weighed myself on the 23rd. Is there a connection? I don't know. I think I'll ditch the flax, for now, and see what happens. It's a shame really because flax meal does impart certain valuable health benefits. I even found a way around the whole phytic acid issue - by using sprouted flax seed meal.

Anyhow, perhaps I'll know better if it was the flax by next week or the following week. If nothing changes by then ... I'll reintroduce the sprouted flax.

Tuesday, February 24, 2009

The big goal for today, come heck or high water, is to exercise. I will do it! Rah! Anyone seen my exercise shoes? :-)

PS - I had trouble posting comments on a few of the LC menu blogs yesterday. Anybody else encounter that glitch?

Update: I did a 45 minute, 45 second workout on the treadmill. My speed level was 3. The incline was 1.5. I walked a total of 2.27 miles - not counting my warm up walk (5 minutes, to get to the gym) and my cool down walk (5 minutes, to get back home).

I tried to make it a "full body workout" by pumping my arms while walking. Man I must have looked goofy on that thing! :-)

Monday, February 23, 2009

A dark day has befallen me. I didn't lose any weight this week! Boo! Hiss! Doh!

I'm not entirely sure why that is. It could have something to do with the accelerated weight loss in the previous two weeks (about 2 1/2 lbs. per week).

I try not to get too excited about any one week change - be it positive or negative. If I notice that this stall-pattern remains for the next few weeks ... then I'll seriously consider making some changes to my program. But for now, I'll just put myself in a "wait and see" mode.

Besides, I've already committed to starting my new exercise regimen today. That may help kick start some additional loss. It will certainly help improve my overall health. That should be my primary goal anyhow. :-)

Sunday, February 22, 2009

This afternoon we'll be heading out to an Oscar party. It's Academy Award time again!

We're in charge of bringing the pizza. That gives you an idea about what kind of food will be there. That's right ... the kind of food I used to love to eat. No worries though. I just need to plan to avoid any problems.

Here's my plan: I plan on eating just prior to going to the party. I'll also have something simple planned for (a late) dinner for when we come back. A full belly is a safe belly.

At the party, I'll just enjoy the good company and the award show. Imagine that! How will I ever survive?! :-) I'll try to take some pictures of what I don't eat. That's always good as a conversation starter. ;-)

Update: I forgot to take the photographs at the party. Doh! I'll post dinner pics instead.

Saturday, February 21, 2009

We're going out for a romantic dinner tonight. It's kind of a belated Valentine's Day dinner. :-)

The restaurant is supposed to be excellent. They mainly use organic, locally grown and raised ingredients. If it's not in season, they don't serve it. Healthy and delicious?! Bam!

I've already looked over the menu (online) and spied a few LC-friendly menu options I'll likely choose from. But, you never know. I may get all crazy-like and choose something completely different once we get there. :-P

I'll report back and hopefully have pictures to post as well.

Update: The dinner was wonderful. The company was the best, of course. The food was delicious (perfectly cooked steak and scallops) and served quickly - just the way we like it.

+ 3 thin fillets of petrale sole topped with Italian herbs and sauteed in a mixture of organic butter and organic olive oil. I then covered the fish in a reduced sauce made of white wine, lemon juice, organic butter, "pan bits" (the bits left behind after cooking the fish in the pan) and a little sea salt.

Friday, February 20, 2009

I'm psyching myself up for my upcoming exercise routine. I plan on putting in as much effort in it as I do with my diet. If I can accomplish that, I should be able to stick with the exercise and derive many of the benefits.

Update: I see that U2's No Line of the Horizon just received 5 stars in the new issue of Rolling Stone. I can't wait to hear it, in it's entirety! Something to look forward to. :-)

Update 2: You can listen to the entire U2 album (for free) on their My Space page! Here are the details!

Wednesday, February 18, 2009

Update: I didn't have any good pictures to post. So, I thought I'd post a promotional shot from the film, The Visitor. We saw it this past weekend and enjoyed it quite a bit.

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I really need to start exercising. I think a firm commitment is in order. Something that isn't overwhelming but that at least gets me moving. My plan is to keep it simple and consistent.

Therefore, I commit to myself and my blog readers that I will begin to exercise three times a week - starting Monday. For starters, I will begin by walking on a treadmill for at least 30 minutes. I'll document my success or failure here on the menu blog.

+ 2 thin fillets of petrale sole topped with Italian herbs and sauteed in a mixture of organic butter and organic olive oil. I then covered the fish in a reduced sauce made of white wine, lemon juice, organc butter, "pan bits" (the bits left behind after cooking the fish in the pan) and a little sea salt.

+ 2 thin fillets of petrale sole topped with Italian herbs and sauteed in a mixture of organic butter and organic olive oil. I then covered the fish in a reduced sauce made of white wine, lemon juice, organc butter, "pan bits" (the bits left behind after cooking the fish in the pan) and a little sea salt.

Monday, February 16, 2009

Steppin' on the Scale Day. The verdict: I'm down about 2 1/2 pounds. That's about the same amount as last week. This may be a clue that my daily glass of wine was slowing my loss. I think it's too soon to tell though because there were weeks when I lost even more weight than this while drinking wine.

Note: I didn't feel like making or eating dinner tonight. Instead, I just made a more substantial version of my WZ meal replacement shake - by adding more cream. I also finished a container of yogurt that needed finishing. An odd meal. But it was pretty nutritious.

Sunday, February 15, 2009

I got a late start to the day. This gave me an opportunity to make my new Wowee Zowee Meal Replacement Shake. I think I'll need to tinker with the quantities of the ingredients somewhat. For instance, I found that the shake was too think this morning. So I tried upping the water content by a few ounces.

Tomorrow I may add more cream and less water to the mix. If that works (consistency-wise) it would be great because it'll further up the caloric content. I feel like any good meal replacement shake needs to be substantial enough to approximate the number of calories we'd normally get in a meal.

In a few days, I'll probably have all the kinks worked out. The good news is that the taste will only get better (and it's already really good) if I end up adding more cream. :-)

Update: Hearing a new song by one of your favorite bands is always a mood-booster. Here's a new track from U2's upcoming album: No Line on the Horizon

I tried it the other day at a local health food store. The ingredients are excellent and so is the taste. I figure it'll add some additional veggies and low-sugar fruit extracts into my diet.

Update: I added a recipe for a new "meal replacement" shake I made this afternoon. I think I'll have this on a regular basis. It's delicious. It provides all the elements I'm looking for in a meal: a good source of protein, fat, fiber, low in carbs and nutrient dense. It's also really easy to make and clean up is a snap. I used a small, plastic shaker cup to make it.

Update #2: As some of you may have noticed, I've temporarily stopped drinking wine. At first, I did so because of my mouth situation. But then I noticed that I also lost more weight last week ... while I was avoiding alcohol. So, for the time being, I'm taking a break from "the sauce".

But here's the thing. I'm a firm believer in the health benefits of red wine (for most people). What to do? What to do? Well, what I'm doing is taking a red wine supplement to compensate for the lack of actual red wine in my diet. This supplement is supposedly 3 times as powerful (antioxidant-wise) as a typical glass of red wine. It's also alcohol and calorie-free. Price-wise, it's about $6 per month. Much cheaper than buying organic red wine.

Friday, February 13, 2009

My mouth is on the mend. I'm planning on having a liquid diet up until dinner today. That'll give my poor mouth a little more time to heal. And to break my liquid diet ... I have a yummy dinner planned. :-)

Thursday, February 12, 2009

I'm going to try to summarize this past week's medical blunder in as concise a way as possible.

Several days ago, I noticed something wrong with my mouth. Have you ever had a "white coating" on your tongue? Well, I had some white areas in the inner cheeks of my mouth.

So, like any 21st century lunatic, I did some digging on the Internet. Aha! This must be a mild case of thrush! Or maybe some other kind of fungal infection that I hear so much about on the 'net. Never mind that I don't fall into any of the "high risk" groups that generally get thrush - newborn babies, people undergoing chemo or using steroid drugs, etc.

But those warning signs didn't stop my quest to heal myself. I proceeded, on the assumption that I did have thrush. I read up about "natural" ways to treat it. They seemed awfully safe. Heck, some of the information was meant to be applied to babies! How much safer did I want it to be?

To make a longer story shorter, I started rinsing with grapefruit seed extract (a natural anti-fungal/anti-microbial) & water, sea salt & water and even a little baking soda & water. The trouble is ... the problem kept getting worse!

Not only did the situation look worse, it felt worse. I went from no pain at all, to discomfort, to a level of pain that was severe enough to make me not feel like eating. It even hurt to rest my head against the pillow at night.

So I finally broke down and went to go see my dentist. What did she find? A particularly virulent form of thrush? Some other bizarre fungal infection rarely seen outside of the jungles of Borneo? Nope. I had chemical burns ... from the grapefruit seed extract and the sea salt rinses!

The prescription: change toothpaste, rinse only with a water-hydrogen peroxide mixture and stop using the other stuff that was burning my mouth!

My dentist believes I may have been had an allergic reaction to my (natural) toothpaste. That's likely what cause the mild irritation (the white patches in my mouth). Go figure ...

Monday, February 9, 2009

Let's get down to brass tacks. I lost about 2 1/2 pounds this week. That's better than I expected. I'm not sure why I lost more this week than the past few weeks. Perhaps it's because I haven't been drinking as much wine. That's one possibility.

I'm probably going to continue cutting down on my wine consumption, as a personal experiment. We'll see if and how that impacts my weight loss goals.

1. Cut the peppers down the middle. Scoop out the insides, leaving you with a "jalapeno canoe".

2. Wash your hands well! The insides of jalapenos contain the "hot stuff" (that's the technical term for it).

3. Put the pepper halves on a baking sheet. We put parchment paper on the sheet prior to placing the peppers on - makes for an easy clean up. Put the peppers into a 350 degree oven for 10 minutes.

4. Chop and dice all the necessary components.

5. Combine room temperature cream cheese with the other ingredients.

6. Pull out the peppers (from the oven). Allow them to cool. And then fill them with the other (combined) ingredients.

7. Put the peppers back into the oven and broil them until they look bubbly and begin to brown on top. This seems to take about 5 minutes in our oven. But check sooner to make sure you don't burn them.

Note: I don't have much of an appetite. I think it's more of a mental thing. But I must say that this meal goes down pretty easy. And it sits well with my digestive system. So it's a good choice at times like these. Pretty healthy too.